Broken Guitar = An Axe to Grind

In the spring of 2008, the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based band Sons of Maxwell was seated aboard a United Airlines plane that was preparing to leave Chicago. A woman who was seated behind them watching the baggage handlers outside suddenly cried out, “My god they’re throwing guitars out there.” As it turned out, they’d wrecked a $3,500 Taylor guitar belonging to the band’s lead singer, Dave Carroll. After spending nine months trying to resolve the issue and get United to accept responsibility for the damages, Carroll finally vowed to create three songs about the event, as well as music videos that would be posted online. The first of these songs, “United Breaks Guitars,” has turned into a viral video sensation.
United Breaks Guitars

The lesson here is that social media marketing cuts both ways. Social media not only provides new avenues that companies can use to communicate or promote their brand, but it also gives a voice to customers whose complaints have not been given a proper hearing–something every customer service representative should bear in mind whenever they encounter a gracious Canadian musician with a legitimate grievance.

You can read the whole story here: http://www.davecarrollmusic.com/story/united-breaks-guitars.United Breaks Guitars

This entry was posted on Monday, July 13th, 2009 at 3:56 pm and is filed under Social Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.